Words Left Unspoken
by kenziebelle
Summary: When Annabeth is literally thrown into Percy's life, the two learn to grow with the world around them. With Percy being deaf, Annabeth must take a second look into how she views life. Along the way, the two find love, happiness, and heartbreak as they venture into what's known as the "real" world.


The weather was beautiful and Annabeth couldn't be more pissed. Her professor had given her an 'A-' on an assignment deserving of at least and 'A.' So she's a perfectionist, sue her. And it really wouldn't have been a big deal if she hadn't been up all night working on it, in addition to a project for another class. Three years into college, and she still barely handled the workload.

In an attempt to curb her anger, she was making her way to the coffee shop on campus. The idea of a nice, warm cup of liquid caffeine goodness was almost enough to make her happy.

She stopped upon reaching the crosswalk leading to the promised land. She could see the letters across the street, tempting her with its deep red. Her eyes wandered back to the walk sign, seeing it still had the little red hand, meaning to wait. It was pretty obvious they weren't allowed to cross, yet she was incredulous at the sight of a guy halfway into the street. This wasn't totally out of the normal, as she did live in New York, where jaywalking is the least of anyone's worries. No. What really got her attention was the car coming straight at him that didn't seem to want to stop.

"Hey!" She yelled at him, waving her arm frantically. "Watch out!"

No response.

_Does this guy have a death wish?!_

"You need to move!" She tried again to get his attention. The car was gradually getting closer, and she was starting to panic. She couldn't stand by and let this idiot get killed. Not to mention the emotional trauma she was have to get over. So before she changed her mind, she did something unexpected— she ran into the street.

Annabeth did not consider herself a hero. In fact, she wasn't one to just help people in her free time. She was a firm believer that if they couldn't help themselves, then they weren't worth the time. So for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why she did it.

Her feet took her forward with a speed rivaling even track stars. She reached him in record time, grabbing his arm with such force, it was a miracle it didn't rip right off his body. Not a second later, the car flew by with a honk of its horn, to which Annabeth returned her middle finger.

"Dick!" She yelled before turning back the obvious being behind her. His eyes were furrowed over eyes that were a mesmerizing shade of green. His headphones were still in, and she could hear the faint beats playing through.

"Are you stupid?! You could've gotten yourself killed!" At this point, Annabeth was ready to kill him herself. With a flourish, the guy's hands flew up and started moving at a rapid pace.

_Oh, God._

_He's deaf. _She blanched at how she was the real idiot in this scenario. Her words became lead in her throat. She didn't know sign language. How was she supposed to communicate with him? This was a nightmare, and actual, real life nightmare, and why did she have to be so stupid and—. His arms were waving in front of her face, halting her panic attack in its tracks. His phone was suspended in front of him for her to read. She squinted to see better, as her glasses were left at home today.

'I can read lips, just speak slower please,' it read.

_Deep breaths, Annabeth, this is better than nothing. Now don't make a fool of yourself._

With her lips visible, she reluctantly repeated her earlier exclamation. "I asked if you were stupid because you almost got killed. But I'm sorry I didn't realize you literally couldn't hear me but there was a car and I thought it was going to hit you and-"

She saw his hands waving again, but this time they were accompanied by a slight groan. He held up his new message, frowning just a bit.

'Too fast'

"Sorry."

This was a mess. Annabeth felt so much embarrassment from everything. Looking around, she realized people were staring. Like, a lot of people. Of course, the one time people in New York decide to pay attention, it had to be when she was making a fool of herself.

"Everything is fine! I'm good, he's good, we're all good." She hoped her words would clear the crowd, and slowly but surely, it did. She averted her attention back to the man, only to be welcomed by a new message on the small screen.

'Can we go sit down somewhere? I was on my way to get some coffee."

"Oh! I was too. Yes, let's head that way!"

The walk gave her a chance to process the last five minutes that felt like five years. She just saved someone from getting plowed by a car. Her. Annabeth Chase. The girl who cares more about her grades than people.

She really didn't know how this was going to unfold. Yes, he could read lips, and yes, he was typing on his phone, but how was that an effective form of communication?

_I really should have taken that ASL class in high school._

They wandered into the coffee shop and headed to the counter to order. Without warning, a squeal pierced Annabeth's ears. A girl with explosively large, dark curls and short stature shaking from excitement.

"HEy !Guys! Percy's here!" She spoke to her coworkers behind the counter.

Annabeth heard overlapping voices of "Percy?" And "really?!" As people appeared as if from nowhere. At first, she was under the impression that only two people were working but after the announcement found there were at least five. It was a bit overkill, in her opinion. But as they all emerged from every corner of the store, she watched Percy's eyes lit up. She became an onlooker, completely enthralled by the magic happening before her. Hands were moving about with such purpose, the conversation flourishing. She had no idea what was being said, and instead felt an odd sense of contentment knowing he wasn't being excluded.

_You just met him and you're already pitying him? He's a human being Annabeth stop being ableist. _

The conversation carried on for a few minutes, with a couple of glances her away, as she assumed he was retelling the unfortunate incident. Finally, when it seemed everything had been explained, the girl with golden eyes and the boisterous curls turned toward her.

"Hello!" She said with a wide smile. "I'm Hazel! I wanted to say thank you for saving Percy from possible peril."

"Oh, it was nothing, really," Annabeth's cheeks became flushed, "I thought he was just stupid. But I had no idea he was actually deaf. Which are definitely not synonymous! I'm sure he's quite intelligent and-" She sighed heavily. "I'm just going to stop talking before I say something even more offensive."

The girl behind the counter held her smile. She didn't seem to be deterred by Annabeth's senseless rambling.

"That's quite alright, you're words are not offensive. And, between me and you, he can be quite the airhead from time to time." Annabeth laughed at that, happy the tension had eased. "So what can I get out to drink? And don't worry about paying, it's on the house." Hazel sent a wink in her direction, and she couldn't find it in herself to argue.

"Thanks," she heaved a sigh, her shoulders slumping from the weight of the day. "I appreciate it."

Suddenly, Percy was tapping her shoulder, and she turned to see him signing. Immediately, she was lost in the movement, not a clue as to what he wanted. She tried her hardest to make out the words on his lips, but to no avail.

_Kudos to you, deaf community, reading lips is hard._

Thankfully, Hazel stepped in as a translator, as the only thing that came to Annabeth's mouth was an "uh…" and a confused look.

"He wants to know if you want to sit down."

"Oh, uh, yes." Annabeth nodded to Percy before thanking Hazel.

They sat in a booth against the wall, where they had a nice view of both the coffee shop and the bustling streets. Once they settled into their seats, Annabeth spoke to Percy, making sure he could clearly see her lips.

"So you must come here quite often for them to know you so well."

He nodded in response before typing on his phone.

'I've been coming here almost everyday since starting school, so if they didn't know me, I'd be a bit surprised.'

"So I'm assuming you go to NYU, too?"

A nod. She continued.

"What year are you? I'm a third year architect major." Her question received a heavy sigh. She waited patiently as he typed his response.

'I'm studying marine biology, but unfortunately this is my fifth year *insert eyeroll*. Yay super senior! But for real, this is my last semester and I'm so ready to get the hell out of here.'

The wrote speaking sent Annabeth into a laughing fit. The comedic effect of writing out his facial expressions was astounding.

"I'm sorry you had to stay an extra year. I'm also going to have to stay an extra year because that's what my major calls for." Annabeth added her own eye roll of her own for emphasis. She marveled at the smile that brushed across his face as he let out a breathy laugh.

'I'm sure you're going to be just fine. You seem like someone who has their head screwed on straight. I, however, never seem to know what the hell I'm doing.'

"You'd be surprised how scatter-brained I can be. I once turned in a cafe sketch as my English paper and I didn't even realize until I got to my studio class the next day." There was his laugh again: a slight real ease of air, with a hint of sound.

'Wow. Miss "I-still-don't-know-your-name" has more to her than meets the eye *insert winky face*'

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry !" Annabeth stuck her hand out with a smile. "Annabeth Chase. Nice to formally meet you." He politely shook her hand before turning back to his phone.

'Percy Jackson. Pleased to make your acquaintance.' She looked up to see him tip an invisible hat.

The pair fell into a rhythm, her speaking, him typing. At some point, their drinks were brought to the table, to which they exchanged a quick thanks (in their respective 'languages') before resuming conversation.

It wasn't until night began to fall that they realized the length of their conversation. Hazel approached their table to let them know they couldn't stay any longer.

"Unfortunately, we have to kick you out. It's closing time." Her words were accompanied by sign to keep Percy in the loop.

"Oh, my." Annabeth laughed a little. "I didn't realize how long we've been here. I'm so sorry if we bothered you at all." Percy was gathering their things, and tidying up, so the girls continued in their conversation.

"Oh! No problem at all!" The brunette said with a sign of dismissal. "In fact, I'm glad the two of you stayed so long. Percy doesn't really go out and meet people, so it's nice to see him smiling and laughing so much."

Annabeth let the words settle into her head. She couldn't imagine how lonely he must be. Granted, she knew he had people to talk to, but still. He had such a captivating personality, and to think not everybody got to see this side of him because of their own prejudices. She started to spiral again, delving on how hard it must be to be Percy.

_You don't even know him Annabeth. He doesn't seem depressed and mopey, does he? He has every right to be happy as you do._

Before she fell even further into her rabbit hole of a brain, Percy was motioning for them to leave. His face held a hopeful look, much like that of a kid waiting for permission to eat candy.

"Well, thanks again, Hazel." Annabeth started to walk away. "I will definitely make a habit of coming here regularly." She gave one final wave before following Percy out the door. She felt her face heat up when she heard a faint "don't forget to invite me to the wedding," thankful she was the only one to hear it.

**Disclaimer: I obviously don't own these characters, that would be the amazing Rick Riordan!**

**Hey, readers! This is my first fanfiction! I have a tendency to start these kinds of stories, and don't finish them, so here's to finishing this story! I'm hoping that putting it out there will encourage me to get it done, knowing other people are invested. I also thought now would be a great time to post, because of the possibility of a TV/Movie reboot (EEEEEKKK)! Please be sure to like/follow and all those things (but only if you want to ️). Additionally, constructive criticism is welcome. Thanks for reading! **


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